Million Mile Month: Week 3

With three weeks completed on this pedometer geek’s goal of 100 miles in the Million Mile Month, over 86 miles have been completed. How many miles the community has completed, whether the goal of a million miles will be met in the next week, that remains to be seen. Just as it remains to be seen whether the last 14 miles will be completed.

This pedometer geek is hopeful that both the personal goal and the community goal will be met (and even exceeded). Of course, the more individuals who join even at this late date will help push those numbers higher. Check out millionmilemonth or http://www.healthcode.org if interested.

Now to get back to putting steps on the Fitbit.

Million Mile Month: Week 2

The Healthcode.org’s Million Mile Month is well underway, and to date, the Million Mile Month community has logged over 500,000 miles based on the email sent to participants. Based on this, as in the past, it looks like the million mile goal may be achieved.

This pedometer geek has contributed a small part, nearly 60 miles of the 100 mile goal set. With two weeks to go, this pedometer geek is feeling good about the possibility of achieving my personal goal as well.

Yet, with all the positive results, there is still room for more participants, and still almost two weeks to set a goal and get active. Hike, bike, run, swim, and join the fun. #MMM2018 @HealthcodeIAM

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By the way, it is National Poetry Month, and today is International Haiku Day so in honor of both, one of my haiku:

cherry blossoms whirl…
young girl freed
of training wheels

–nancy brady
(Honorary Mention, Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival, 2017)

Million Mile Month 2018: Week 1

April is the month for the Million Mile Month challenge, which is run by Healthcode.org. Throughout the month all participants work together toward the goal of reaching a million miles. Each participant chooses a goal and can pursue it through walking, running, biking, swimming, or other ways of reaching that goal.

This pedometer geek chose a goal of 100 miles during the month of April. After the first week, the pedometer geek can report approximately 30 miles of the 100 miles is complete, leaving about 70 miles to go. It’s a decent start, but only time will tell if the personal goal will be met as well as whether the community members who are participating with reach the million miles.

Of course, it is never too late to join the challenge.

Daily Prompt: Haul (a haibun)

via Daily Prompt: Haul

A follow-up to yesterday’s post: the Algoma Compass has left bow first. It hauled stern, heading back to its home port in Ontario, Canada. Bon voyage!

Despite the frigid cold, the crowds turned out. Friends and neighbors were talking, laughing, applauding, celebrating the event. The sunrise was breathtaking, creating stars on the water, flashes on the metal of the ship’s smokestacks.

early morning
deep horn sounds
tanker’s departure

Daily Prompt: Frigid

via Daily Prompt: Frigid

The recommissioned tanker Adam Cornelius, which has been renamed Algoma Compass, was supposed to leave the dock yesterday after sitting in the Huron River for the past three years. Rumors circulated that it had been sold for scrap after it never left the dock when its sister ship, the John Borland, left later than expected in July 2015.

Other tankers came and went, discharging their loads of taconite or limestone, but not the Adam Cornelius. One year turned into two and then into three before it was purchased for scrap or so the people thought. That is, until recently, when people noticed activity with the tanker. Lights could be seen shining out of portholes at night, and that is when the news came out that it was finally, finally moving out into Lake Erie, now that the ice is nearly off the lake for the year.

In this city of 8,000 people in which the river and the lake play a huge role in its identity, this is big news. But then the news went out that departure was delayed until today.

So, today, citizens from all over gathered came to watch the launch, which was scheduled for 1:00PM. Despite the wind whipping up, and the frigid temperature coming off the river and the lake, there was a party atmosphere as intrepid persons braved the cold and wind for the launch.

One o’clock arrived, but the Algoma Compass did not move. Nearly an hour later, it was announced by the crew of the Border Patrol boat cruising up and down the Huron River that the launch had again been postponed. Postponed until 7:00AM tomorrow. Reluctantly, some in the crowd dispersed, but will they return early tomorrow, once again braving the frigid conditions?

BP: Haiku Windows

Every week the Haiku Foundation features a column called Haiku Windows moderated by haikuist, KJ Munro, and it is published on Wednesday. This week’s prompt was envelope window. She generally chooses about twenty to thirty haiku to publish, highlighting (with commentary) three or four of them. I am both honored and humbled that she chose one of mine this week. Thanks KJ!

Here is my haiku, followed by her commentary:

recycled bill envelope…
I play peek-a-boo
with the baby

Nancy Brady (2018)

Many poems this week are concerned with the contents of the envelope – news that is either welcomed or dreaded – and here we have a completely different scene, where the window of the envelope becomes part of a delightful game…

Million Mile Month, April 2018

Today is the first day of the Million Mile Month, in which all those who are signed up for the event on the https://events.healthcode.org, begin their challenge. This is the fifth year for the event, and it is the fourth year this pedometer geek will have participated. (This is based on the number of t-shirts I now own, but I digress.) This year I have challenged myself to walk one hundred miles. Now, to do it as I came up short last year.

The organization, that encourages donations, are always looking for more participants and it doesn’t just have to be walking or running. Other events like swimming, gardening, biking, yoga, and others can be used for this challenge. More than anything else, the idea is to participate in healthy activities, and their charity promotes this.

I hope you will join me and the thousands of others who will walk, run, bicycle, swim their way to the goal of a million miles during April.

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BP: On another subject, March was a particularly good month for those haiku of mine which were selected for publication. I had at least nine haiku/senryu published in various journals: Stardust Haiku, World Haiku Association, Haiku Window on the Haiku Foundation. I also had some haiku chosen for publication in the near future (and three of them can be found on April’s Failed Haiku). On the other hand, I had my share of rejection, but the scale is tipping in the favor of acceptance. Thanks to those editors who found something in my haiku and chose them. It keeps this poet trying to make sense of the world through the written word especially now that it is National Poetry Month.

From those selected, here is one of them.

vernal equinox
the woods fill
with birdsong

–nancy brady

Stardust Haiku, March 2018